 Gudjohnsen was criticised after the 2-0 defeat by Real Madrid |
Barcelona have backed Eidur Gudjohnsen to prove an effective deputy for the injured Samuel Eto'o and have ruled out buying a new striker in January. Ex-Chelsea striker Gudjohnsen has hit two league goals and has yet to score in Europe this season before Tuesday's Champions League tie with the Blues.
Barcelona vice-president Ferran Soriano told BBC Sport: "We have a lot of confidence in Eidur and Javier Saviola.
"Eto'o will be back early in 2007 so it doesn't make sense to buy a striker."
Eto'o suffered a serious knee injury at the end of September and was predicted to be out for five months.
In his absence, European Cup holders Barcelona have slipped to defeats in key games - against Chelsea in the Champions League and at rivals Real Madrid in the Spanish league.
After the defeat by Real, Gudjohnsen came under criticism for several missed chances and he could be replaced by the more mobile Saviola for the Group A tie against Chelsea at the Nou Camp.
 | Frank Rijkaard has all our confidence |
"Our technical staff are confident with the players we have and specifically with Eidur," said Soriano.
"He has scored several times and played well against Atletico Bilbao and Celta Vigo.
"In the summer we bought three outstanding players - Eidur, Gianluca Zambrotta and Lilian Thuram.
"But even for these extraordinary players it is tough to adapt to a new team that is well-coordinated and has been playing together for many years.
"But they are all excellent players and they will be key to the squad this year."
"For us, the squad is complete and our technical staff are very happy that we have two players for every position.
"If you look at the names in that squad it is evident we have one of the best squads in Europe. These are the players that have to fight, to play and to win for Barca."
Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard has been criticised for his policy of rotation this season but Soriano backed the Dutchman's decision-making.
"The job is obviously very difficult, precisely because we have a large squad and we have two players for each position.
"He is the one who knows how the team is and how best to administrate it.
"From a management perspective we do not interfere - we leave the responsibility to him.
"It is too early to discuss whether the rotation policy is good or not. I do not think this is permanent policy.
"It's something the coach thinks is good for the team at the moment but he will change it as the season evolves.
"Frank has all our confidence."
If Chelsea beat the European Cup holders, Barcelona will face a difficult task to quality for the last 16.
"This is an important game but less important than in the two previous seasons when we met because they were knockout matches," said Soriano.
"We can still react if we lose on Tuesday but it would not be good as it would put us under a lot of pressure."
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